My little date!!!

This little boy is such a sweetheart.



Last night Wayne went to play hockey and so I decided it would be a good night to go on a date with Nate. I told Nate that he was taking me on a date and as we were driving into the city I asked him if he was going to pay for supper. He said he couldn't because he didn't have money. I reminded him that he had a full piggy bank of money (obviously I was just teasing him). He said he couldn't use that money because he was saving it to buy some games. I asked him if he would ever take me out for supper and pay. He said "I will Mommy, I will buy some games with my money in my bank and then save up for 2 more games and a supper for you, is that okay mommy?" It was soooo sweet. I told him for now he didn't have to worry about paying and mommy would cover the cost (I did let him give the waiter the card and push the buttons for debit, he even gave the waiter a BIG tip).

It was nice going out with JUST Nathan and being able to spend time focused just on him. We had a VERY good conversation about Ninja Turtles, Bolt, Preschool, fries and everything that was important to him and I enjoyed every minute with my little stud. Nathan felt it was important that he sit beside me and he kept kissing and hugging me and telling me how much he loves me.... what a date hey?!?

After supper we went to Toy's R Us and were there for over an hour. Normally I just rush through the store and only let him look at a few things, this time I just waited while he looked and touched EVERYTHING. I enjoyed watching his excitement and played with a few things too.

I feel like day to day I get so caught up in getting the house clean, making meals, my job, rushing....rushing.... rushing that I forget to just slow down and enjoy this CRAZY fast changing time with my son. I want to stop and actually LISTEN to what he is saying to me, not just say "Uh huh" as I am running around doing things. He changes everyday and I feel like I am missing out on soooo much with him and I spend 24 hours a day with him. So it's become my personal goal to stop what I am doing and just listen, play or do what my son NEEDS because I don't want to look back in 20 years and only remember having a clean house and good food, and not able to remember what Nathan liked at 3, what his interests were, what a great kid he really is.

Last night was a WONDERFUL night and I think that Nathan and I are going to make Date night a regular thing.

PSA!!!

If you ever want to just kick up your normal day to day mashed potatoes you need to try THESE. They are SOOOOOO good. I have been waiting to try these for a VERY long time, but because of the amount of FAT (mmmm..... fat) in them and trying to lose weight I just didn't think it was a very smart idea. However, now that I am pregnant (yes, I am still eating REALLY healthy for most of the time) I feel that a little indulgence every once in a while is TOTALLY okay.

These potatoes are DEFINATELY an indulgence, but they are soooo worth it (BTW, the first time you make them I would recommend to not skimp on anything, you need to experience the yummyness, after that if you still want to skimp go for it) . We ate them with ham and sliced tomatoes and cucumbers, and gravy was not needed. They are creamy, flavorful, just totally yummy. I probably won't make them again for a while, again, once you read the recipe you will understand, but I'm thinking Mom and Dad can make some of their FABULOUS greek ribs and I will make these.... ohhhhh.....Dad I will totally bring an extra box of ribs down if I need to.... my mouth is WATERING!!!!

I just thought I would pass on this awesome find to all my wonderful friends out there in blog land. :) Yes grandma, you can probably make a smaller portion for a few meals for you and grandpa, or just invite over a bunch of grandkids and let them enjoy them as well. :)

Thanks Andy!!!

Writing a blog can be intimidating sometimes. There are lot's of different things that run through my head during the day and most times I can't think of the "perfect" way to write it so I don't. Andy really inspired me to just put it out there, so I will.

First off I want to say a HUGE thankyou for all the support and love that you have all shown me, but especially over the last week. It's amazing how so many people come out of the woodworks to show their support and show that they care and have been hoping for my happiness.

Also, Nathan and I have spent the last 3 years at home and he has never been to daycare, other than nursery and playdates he didn't get a lot of socialization with other kids. I think as a mom you always wonder if you are doing what is right for your child, and Wayne and I made the decision years ago that I would stay home with our kids if at all possible. However, I've wondered if sometimes it would be good for him to be in a daycare setting every once in a while to get used to dealing with other kids. I wasn't sure how Nate would do in Preschool since he can definately be bossy and stubborn. However, I talked with his teacher this week and she said that he is such a wonderful little boy (which I already knew), that he is very mature and smart (again, I totally knew this...hehe.). I asked her about how he acts with the other kids, is he bossy, aggressive... she said not at all. That he is the PERFECT combination of passive and aggressive...he doesn't let kids push him around, but he isn't mean. PHEW... that is EXACTLY what I wanted to hear. I am okay if Nate isn't the smartest person out there, I am okay if he wants to grow up to be a doctor or a hairdresser, I'm okay with him being ANYTHING but what I want is for Nathan to be a "strong" person. I don't want him to be mean or a bully, but I want him to stand up for himself and not put up with crap from people that are being bully's. I want him to know who HE is and be okay with that. Even though I know that Nathan is a GREAT kid it's nice to hear it from someone that is impartial. Plus, Nate was soooo proud of himself that his teacher said nice things about him, he kept telling me he is so smart...haha....ya, your smart buddy and cocky!! :)

I looked at a chinese gender prediction calendar today....okay, I actually looked at 4 different ones, and 3 out of the 4 said I am having a boy...but 1 out of 4 said I'm having a girl...hmmmm.... I wonder what it will be. I also tried the wedding ring swinging over your tummy thing. If it swings back and forth it's a girl, if it swings in circles it's a boy.....My ring would only swing back and forth even when I tried to swing it in a circle it would instantly go back to back and forth. Of course, I think it would be a LOT of fun if I had a girl, because hello, girl stuff is WAY cuter than boy stuff. But I will be happy with ANY gender of baby that I get... seriously, I just pray for a healthy baby, that's all that really matters right. Oh and just to let you know, I feel like it's a boy, in fact the other day I was talking to my mom and I said something about the boys going to daycare when I am working again. I caught myself and changed it to boy and girl but boys is what usually slips out of my mouth and what is in my mind. I KNEW that Nate was a boy (we could never see through ultrasound, I just always thought of him as a boy). We want to find out what this baby is, Wayne and I both don't really like surprises so why wait?If we can't find out, oh well, we will know in 6 months...hehe. Do you think it's lame that I already bought a few girl outfits though?!? I figure I can give them away as baby gifts if it's a boy again. :)

Hmmm... Oh man, I think there was more that I wanted to talk about but the mommy mush brain is coming back and I can't remember what it is. ;)

Oh well... I'll do more posts that I just put it out there... great idea Andy.

I DID IT!!!

Well I did it!!! I passed my Accuplacer!!! I am not sure if I wrote about the Accuplacer but if you don't know what it is, it is a test that allows me to challenge my Grade 12 Math class. I was told that my Alberta Math 33 class was not good enough for Saskatchewan standards. So instead of having to retake a Math class I challenged the Accuplacer. You have to pass 3 parts of the test (there is a minimum mark to pass but I don't know what it is) , Math (which can be anything from Grade 10 Math to Advanced Grade 12 Math), Sentence Structure, and Reading Comprehension. If you pass these 3 parts then you write an essay. If I pass all 4 parts then I won't have to retake the Math class.

I took the Accuplacer about a month ago. I passed the Math part with 94%!!!! I was sooooo excited because I was REALLY worried about the Math since I hadn't taken a Math course in 10.5 years...AGGGHHH, but I totally KICKED it's butt. I got 86% (or something, I don't really remember the EXACT mark) on the Sentence Structure part. I missed the stinking Reading Comprehension by 1 MARK!!!!AHHHH. I was pretty upset. I had 1 more chance to retake the Reading Comp. part and if I didn't pass I had to retake the Math class... I know passing the English part to not take the Math part doesn't make sense, but it's what I had to do.

Last night I was trying to study the reading comp. stuff but really wasn't doing too well and was getting a little stressed. My fabulous husband gave me a beautiful blessing and I felt instant peace... I didn't know if I was going to pass, but I knew that whatever was meant to be would be.

This morning I retook the test. I got 96% on the Reading Comp..... WOO HOOO!!!!! I then had 2 hours to write the essay. I LOVE writing essays... I am a fabulous BS'er, but I haven't written an English essay in a LONG time. The topic was what Technology has helped change our country or something like that. I wrote the essay, kicked it's BOOTY and got 100%!!!! YAY!!!!

I am sooooo stinkin pumped!!!! Having passed this exam means that there is NOTHING else that I have to do to get accepted into Practical Nursing!!!! So now I just have to wait to see when I am accepted.

I have NEVER felt so strong, smart, in control and powerful in my life. I feel like I am finally taking control of MY LIFE and I have done the hard work to get to this goal and I am seriously sooooo proud of myself. I have always wanted to have an education. I am a hairdresser, and I like hairdressing... it definately wasn't what I wanted to do for the REST of my life. I want to be a nurse. I want to be able to take care of my family if something were to happen to Wayne or his job. I want to be able to teach my children about furthering their education and being able to be an example of this. There is NOTHING in this world that would make me regret being a mom, or taking these last 3 years to be with Nathan, that is BY FAR THE BEST thing I have ever done.... but it feels amazing as a woman and as ME (not Mommy) to be doing this for ME!!!! Yes, there are definately those moments when I think about all the time that I am going to have to miss with my kids because I am in school or because I am working. But I KNOW that I am doing something that will make me feel better about myself, will help me grow and be ME and doing something for myself, and in return will WONDERFULLY affect my family. I am SERIOUSLY soooo excited!!!! Can you tell??!

Everything that I have worked SOOOOO hard for these last few years are finally happening. I am soooo excited to start this new part of my life with another beautiful baby, my wonderful husband and cute little man and the start of an education that I have ALWAYS wanted.

Nate got a new shirt!!!

Nathan LOVES his new shirt and I thought I would share it here:















Hahaha!!! Yes, all my devoted blog friends, I can FINALLY tell you all the VERY exciting news. After 3 long and trying years we are finally expecting baby #2 on May 30th 2009!!!! We are BEYOND excited and I've been waiting for 8 weeks to finally tell everyone. We wanted to wait for the first trimester to be done since I have had 2 miscarriages in the past and we had a little scare at 7 weeks with this baby. Today I am 12 weeks PREGNANT!!!! WOOHOO!!! It feels SOOOOO amazing to finally be able to say that.

I was starting to get worried that people were going to start asking me if I was pregnant or just getting fat since I am starting to get a good little ponch on me. ;)

This pregnancy has been totally different than Nate's. With Nathan I was nauseous ALL day long but would never puke. This time I've been fine and then the littlest smell or thought of food would keep me hugging the toilet for quite a long time. But it's all been worth it to know there is a tiny little baby growing inside me.

Like I said we had a scare at 7 weeks when I woke up and was bleeding. I did my bus run and then Wayne came and got me and we rushed into the doctor who checked me out and then had me get an ultrasound. I felt like I couldn't breathe the whole morning while we waited.... I couldn't go through this again, I couldn't have tried for soooo long to finally get this baby and to lose it just like that. I laid on the table and the Dr. found the little blob INSTANTLY, there in the blob was the most BEAUTIFUL thing I have EVER seen, a heartbeat. I started bawling, it was THE MOST beautiful blob I have ever seen. After I gained my composure I had the Dr. really check to make sure there was just the one heartbeat and that's all there was.... we are having 1 baby. :)

Anyways, Nathan really does love his shirt and that's how we told both sets of parents. We sent Nate upstairs to show my mom his new shirt, which she said was her "Most Favorite shirt EVER"!!! My dad said, "What does this mean?" hahaha. Nathan had the shirt on when we went out to Wayne's mom and dad's. He was hanging out with everyone for almost 30 minutes and NOONE noticed, so finally Wayne had Nathan show Grandma and Grandpa, they liked the shirt too.

Remembrance Day

Yesterday as I sat for the moment of silence I couldn't help but feel an amazing amount of gratitude for those that have risked their lives, and are risking their lives for us and our freedom.

When I lived in New York I worked for a family that was Jewish. I learned an incredible amount of things about their religion and I had some really neat experiences that I will remember for ALL my life. One of the amazing experiences I had was I got to spend time with this family's Zadie and Bubie (Grandpa and Grandma). They would come over quite often and then one day I noticed some numbers on Zadie's arm. I had NO idea what they were and I asked him about them. He told me that these were the numbers that were his identity as he was in the concentration camps. He wasn't a person, he was a number at that time and these numbers represented that. I don't know if all of the prisoners received one of these tatoos but I know many did and Bubie showed me hers as well. WOW!!! That one moment made me feel like all that history that I had been taught in school was REAL. That there REALLY were "those" people out there and that I now knew 2 of them.

I didn't know if it would be disrespectful to ask a lot of questions but over time I learned a bit of Zadie(Grandpa) and Bubie's(Grandma) stories. They were VERY young when their families were captured, they were taken to the camps and seperated from all of their siblings and parents. Zadie was put to work... I don't know what he did, but he was strong so he was "needed". I heard that they saw THE most HORRIBLE things. I heard stories of rape, of beatings, of torture, but also of hope, of belief, of determination, and of love.

They were finally let go, I assume after the war was over, but I don't know (or remember). They moved to the USA at an incredibly young age, Bubie was only 14. They instantly started working, and working INCREDIBLY hard and tried to make a better life for themselves. Bubie somehow found one of her sisters, whom she had thought she had lost forever, the rest of her family she never saw again. I don't remember if Zadie ever found anyone, but I don't think he did. They eventually met, fell in love, and started their family.

I wish that I would have respectfully asked more questions and actually taken the time to write down the details. However, some of the details I will always remember. The details of how grateful they were for those who fought SOOOO hard to help them, complete strangers, but people that deserved to live. The details of how Bubie's eyes glazed over as she told me of the conditions of the places she was kept, to say they were kept in places and treated like animals would be a HUGE understatement. The detail of the numbers that are forever printed on their arms as a constant reminder of where they came from and where they are now. The numbers that were hidden from the world under long sleeved shirts at all times to help these people to keep their secrets.

I will never forget those details.

I am Grateful and I will REMEMBER.

Christal did this on her blog and I thought it was cute!!! Plus, since I haven't been the most faithful blogger I needed something to fill my blog with!! :)

1. I've come to realize that my last kiss: was pathetic since I have a HUGE coldsore and can't be kissed on the lips... Pathetic.

2. Last night: I should have just gotten up and gone to the bathroom rather than trying to sleep with a full bladder.

3. I drink: water, milk and sometimes juice but rarely drink pop and if I do I shake out most of the carbonation.

4. I eat: almost everything. My mom taught us as young kids that we had to try everything and I still STRONGLY believe that. I try everything and most of the time I like it, sometimes...not so much, but most of the time stuff is pretty good.

5. I love: my boys.

6. My bedroom is: a mess right now. It's full of clothes and suitcases that I am trying to get cleaned up, but obviously I'm taking a break from that.

7. My love life: is......hmmm...... not appropriate to talk about on a child friendly blog :)

8. I hate it when people: think they are better than other people.

9. Love is: Wonderful!!!

10. Marriage is: a journey, sometimes there are hills/mountains that need to be climbed and sometimes smooth roads but when you have your love there to hold your hand and go on the journey with you it is all worth it.

11. Somewhere, someone is thinking: about who they REALLY are.

12. I always: say I love you to Wayne and Nathan multiple times a day.

13. I have a secret crush on: Brad Pitt....mmmmm....

14. My cell phone: is a pain in the BUTT.... I will NEVER use Telus in Saskatchewan again.

15. When I wake up in the morning: I lay in bed for at least another 5 minutes and have to talk myself into getting up into the cold house maybe I should set the thermometor to warm up the house a little earlier so I can get up into a warm house.

16. Before I go to bed I: read my scrpitures, write in Nathan's journal, sometimes write in my journal, say my prayers, check my emails, and go to sleep.

17. Right now I am thinking about: how sore my lip is... I haven't had a coldsore in 6 years and I guess I am making up for the last 6 years.

18. Babies are: such an INCREDIBLE gift from our Heavenly Father.

19. My house: is cold... I think I need to turn up the heat.

20. Today I: don't have any patience, so please don't bug me. :)

21. Tonight I will: have to go grocery shopping since we have NO food in our house.

22. Tomorrow I will: clean house, top to bottom, EVERYTHING needs to be deep cleaned again... why can't dust just stay away while we are gone on vacation?!?

23. I really want to: climb in bed and go back to sleep.

I LOVE this girl!!!

This girl is my BEST friend!!!

Our history:

Shortly after I had Nathan I decided to join the Parent Talk group. For any moms who are having their first baby, I would HIGHLY recommend the Parent Talk group. You can meet new moms and get some awesome advice from a nurse as well.

Anywho, the very first day there was this girl sitting across the room from me. She was very outgoing, funny, kind, and just seemed really cool. Instantly, I wanted to get to know her. Haha...this almost sounds love a romance story...hehe....

We did meet, we also met another fabulous lady Christine that we've been friends with since as well. Jen and I just seemed to REALLY click from day one. We did the time in the Parent Talk group and then Jen, Christine and I decided to start having a girl's night every month.

Well 3 years, tons of chick flicks, and FABULOUS restaurants later we are still fabulous friends. Jen and I started doing playdates with our boys, and from the VERY beginning we just fit. I seriously feel like she is the older sister that I ALWAYS wanted, but not just a sister my best friend. I KNOW that I knew Jen in Heaven before we came to this earth, and I KNOW that we were best friends at that time as well. I can't explain but she is the ying to my yang, the icecream to my pie, my personal home decorator/organizer, the person that kicks me in the butt when I need it....haha...J/K. She really is just one of those friends that I can't wait to grow old with.

How could you not be friends with someone like this?


I wish you all could get to know Jen as well as I do. You would love her to death too.

Her family's pretty great too.

Nathan's funny

A few weekends ago our AWESOME friends Mark and Jen watched Nathan for us while we did another round of delivering phonebooks (that is a WHOLE other story). Anyways, Mark, Jen, and Liam took Nathan to the zoo with them. Jen called me laughing and told me this story. After looking at many of the animals they decided to go and feed the animals. There are those little "candy" dispensers that have the food in them. Jen asked Nate if he wanted to feed the birds, Nate said "Yes". Jen put the money in the dispenser, turned the dial, retrieved the food in her hand and gave Nate a small amount of the food. Instantly, Nate popped the food into his mouth. HAHAHA. Jen said that it was like watching it happen in slow motion. She saw the food in his hand, him lifting his hand to his mouth and putting the food in his mouth all before she could react. Jen said that she told him to spit it out, which he did, and then didn't really know what to do.... HAHAHA!!!! Oh Nate. I'm thinking that because every once in a while we will get some candy from one of those machines. Nate must have thought that it was candy.

The other night Nathan and Wayne were playing hide and seek. All of a sudden Wayne comes ripping into the kitchen "Jackie, hurry and come see where Nate's hiding." I quickly followed Wayne and there in his tall skinny laundry basket were Nathan's legs hanging out the top. Where was his head? Oh, way down in the bottom of the basket... HAHAHA.... In his rush to find a hiding spot, Nate decided that it was a great idea to hide in the basket. However, Mommy or Daddy usually lifts him into the basket, feet first. Nate I guess decided he could do it himself, so in he jumped (he would have had to jump to get in) head first. HAHAHA!!!! By the time we stopped laughing he was wiggling around trying to get himself out. It seriously was the funniest thing I have ever seen. It was one of those moments when I actually debated grabbing the camera and making him wait, but the good mommy in me pulled him out by his feet..hehe..

Update #1 of how many???? I don't know.

Well after crying/bawling for almost 2 hours I finally got myself under control enough to get on my knees. The first time I prayed, I prayed that I wouldn't be angry with Heavenly Father...the second time I prayed, I prayed for patience and understanding.

I finally felt like I could call admissions without breaking down into sobs. I called and got Wendy, yes the Wendy that had given me the wrong information. I told her my name, asked if she wanted to open my file before we started talking and she said she didn't need to because she knew who I was. Okay, I informed her that I was told months ago.......blah...blah...blah....if you've read my last entry you'll know what I was told. BTW, I was not rude at all.... I was blunt, and said EXACTLY what I felt but not rude, just strong. Instantly, she was EXTREMLY rude, told me that if I hadn't taken my Bio. I would have had to get a crazy high mark in Math to make up for my highschool bio's low average "and well, getting those kind of marks aren't guaranteed". She told me that there are human errors...She also started going into even though I was given the wrong information my grades were what was holding me back....blah...blah....blah....

Well that was where I couldn't bite my tongue anymore. I said "You need to stop right there, you were the one that gave me the wrong info, you were the one that told me that my math was fine, you were the one that told me I didn't need to upgrade, you have some NERVE to try to turn this around on me when you were the one that gave me the wrong information. If I had KNOWN that I needed to take my Math I might have done things differently, I could have AT LEAST gotten my Math done and if then I needed to raise my average I could be in a Bio class NOW not next semester. Yes, I understand there are human mistakes but when you guys lost my transcripts didn't inform me of this, and now I am learning that because of other HUMAN MISTAKES I was given the wrong info... well do you understand why I am just a little frustrated????? In highschool I messed around and I regret that now everyday, but I am a very smart person and I am doing EVERYTHING I can to get into this program and yet I feel like everything is waying me down and holding me back."

At this point I broke down... I couldn't stop... the tears started pouring, my voice totally cracked...I could only get out a quiet whisper "Just one sec."..... I sat there breathing deeply trying to get control of my emotions.

When I got back on with her I asked if she understood why I was upset, and her tone was 100% different when she answered. She understood how this whole situation could be VERY upsetting. She talked to me about my options, I got exact answers from her and I asked EVERY little question I could so I was VERY clear on what happens now, in fact, I asked the same thing a few times over.

By the end of our conversation she apologized for giving me the wrong information, and I thanked her for that...because really that's all I really wanted... I just wanted a sorry. It sucks that I have to upgrade my math and that I just found out about it, but at least she owned up to her mistake. We joked about her making sure when she sees my name again come across her desk that no more mistakes happen. I apologized for getting cranky with her and she said she understands why I am so upset. She thanked me for calling and getting it cleared up, and again I thanked her for owning her mistake and how much that meant to me.

I hung up the phone feeling such a weight lifted off my chest. It REALLY sucks that I have to do Math now, but I'm going to take the Accuplacer (a test that allows me to challenge my Math scores). If I pass the Accuplacer then I will instantly be accepted into the program because my average is high enough, I just have to get the Math. Now I get to go back and try to remember Grade 12 math information and Study, Study, Study hoping I can pass...ohhhh how fun!!!

So all in all I am feeling better about what has happened. I don't like what happened, but I now can deal with it because I feel like I was TRULY heard.

I HATE SIAST!!!

A little history that you might know if you've been following this blog..

I applied for the Practical Nursing program in February, I knew I wouldn't get in because I didn't have a high enough grade. I didn't get in. So then after speaking to the counsellors for quite a while I was told to speak directly to Nursing admissions. In highschool I took Math 33, which was a lower level math. However, I SPECIFICALLY asked Wendy if my Math 33 was good enough and I was told it is.

So after some serious thinking I decided to upgrade my Biology since I thought reminding myself of my science might be a good idea since I was going into that field of work. Plus, my Math mark was high so I figured I didn't need to raise it more, and I didn't want to upgrade my English...yuck I hate english..hehe.

Now to 8 weeks ago. I applied for practical nursing at both Kelsey campus and Regina (online course). I got a letter 2 weeks ago from Regina saying that they didn't have my transcript, which they were suppose to request from Kelsey campus. The admissions in Regina called admissions in Saskatoon and Saskatoon told Regina that they didn't have my transcript!!!! Ummm...hello....you do have it, you denied me in Feb... accepted me into the Biology class, you have to have my transcript. I then called Saskatoon admissions and tried to convince them that my transcript was there, I am not sure why it's not now but that's not my problem. She (the lady I was talking to) decided that the file must have been pulled by someone and not put back...I am not sure how that happens when everything is computerized but whatever. So they accepted a copy of the transcript that I have.

Okay, now please remember that the Practical nursing program is a first come first serve basis if you qualify for the program. So now I am at least 6 weeks behind other people because someone at Kelsey screwed up.

On Friday, I got a letter from Regina saying that I "do not cureently meet the regular admission criteria for the program". I was upset, but figured they must have not got my Biology mark and so yes, my average wasn't high enough. I called this morning to ask her why I didn't meet the qualifications, thinking she would say that my average was too low.....OH NO!!!!!! It's because my

MATH 33 ISN'T CLASSIFIED AS A 30 MATH!!!!!

ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!????!!!!!!

Because someone TOTALLY SCREWED up and told me false information, I wasted 3 months of my life (which if you have been following this blog you know that I had a hard time going to school and missing out on being with Nathan while he started his first sport). If I would have known my MATH 33 wasn't good enough I WOULDN'T HAVE UPGRADED BIOLOGY!!!! I WOULD HAVE DONE MY MATH INSTEAD!!!!! ARRRGGGGGGGGG!!!!!!

So here I am BAWLING, devastated, FURIOUS, and I don't know what to do.

I have 2 choices now.... I can either upgrade my Math(again I am going to have to waste AT LEAST 3 months, if there is even a nighttime class) and I probably will have to wait AT LEAST until next semester to do it..... or I can take the Accuplacer which is that I can pretty much prove that I am smart enough to get into the program. Yes, this sounds like the better way....however, remember I haven't been in school for 10 years, and I will be challenged on things that I should have known in highschool. So again.... I now because of the freaking admissions at Siast waste more time studying my BUTT off to do this.

ARRGGGGG!!!!!!

I am sooooooo angry!!!!!!

Seriously, can ANYTHING else go wrong in my life?!?!?!?

My little man!!!

Well today was Nate's first day of Preschool!! I woke up this morning bright and early and Nate was laying there right beside me. We cuddled for a little while and then I asked if he was ready to go to Preschool today. He said that he just wanted to stay home with me and go to Preschool on Friday...I'm sure he was a little nervous. We talked about how fun Preschool was going to be, that he was going to have a really nice teacher, that he was going to meet lot's of new friends, that there would be LOT'S of new toys to play with, and that it was going to be a lot of fun. He decided that maybe it was going to be okay and then instantly wanted me to get up and make him some pancakes. :)

Here's Nate making the pancakes (please don't mind the ugly countertops, someday they will be changed).


Nate requested "name" pancakes, which is my mom's special way to make pancakes...she use to make our inital even when I was a little kid and I was MORE than happy to carry on the tradition with Nate.
"N" for Nathan


Eating those yummy pancakes


Here's what Nate chose to have for his snack on his first day. Crackers, cheese, raisins, and apple juice...very yummy.


We then got dressed, and left for our bus run. When we got back we finished getting ready and went outside to take pictures, cause what's a first day of school without pictures :)

"P1" (I saw this idea of holding up either fingers or a sign to remember what year it was and I LOVED it)


Okay, start posing.


Quick sneeze.


Back to posing.




Then it was time to get to the school. We went in, took off Nate's shoes, put on his NEW shoes, hung up his backpack, coat and lunch kit, got his nametag, and off he went. :( I made him give me a kiss and hug goodbye, and then he left. It was SOOO awesome seeing my big boy excited to be at school.

The last peak at him and then I left.


When I picked him up he was SOOOO excited to see me and tell me all the fun they had today. They played, painted, ate snack, sat in circle time, sang songs, and then had train time. A super fun day and now he wants to know how many sleeps till Friday!!!

Ohhhh the trial's we go through!!!

We have been going through a "phase" with Nathan that is far less than desirable. He can be soooo moody, whiny, stubborn, a total spaz, and just down right naughty, yes a 3 year old!! :) However, there are those moments when he is wonderful, loving, sweet, gentle, obedient, and just WONDERFUL, these moments aren't as common as I would like them to be though.

I have been pulling out my hair trying to figure out how to handle him, he seriously is one of THE MOST stubborn kids I have EVER met. But I FINALLY got on my knees and prayed for help. Yes, I know it should have been the first thing I did but I'm still learning. I've prayed for many other things but I just haven't thought to pray for Nathan and patience for me...again, I know, I know.

Well the funniest thing happened this morning. Nathan started screaming, fake crying, and just being ridiculous because he didn't want to sit in his carseat on the bus, too bad, this isn't one of those times you get to make the decision, sorry buddy. Lately when these moments happen I would have gotten just upset as him and would react to what he was doing, but today was different. Today I quietly/calmly said to the little boy that if he didn't stop spazing there would be no cartoons this morning once we got back home, and that he could make the choice to behave or no cartoons. Unfortunately, the little man kept freaking so no cartoons.

I think at this point he became the Tazmanian Devil...oh boy...did he really try to pull out every trick he has. So again, I informed him that if he didn't stop he was going to have to sit in his room when he got home. Again, the freaking out didn't stop....at this point I started to get angry, but I also had the thought going through my mind over and over again.... "Just take a deep breath, Take a deep breath.....all you need to do is take a deep breath." Anyone that has "dealt" with my child knows that at this point taking a deep breath is not the easiest thing to do, but that's what I did.... I took THE deepest breath I could, and do you know what???!??? I completely calmed down. Crazy hey!!!???!!! For all you perfect parents out there I know that I am behind the times but again, I am trying to learn and grow too :)

I sat there and just ignored the screaming, in fact I hummed a few hymns one being Did you think to Pray...hehe...the spazing got worse than it ever has before, and then all of a sudden it stopped. Oh the peace and quiet, and it wasn't a second too soon because I then opened the door to let my first kids on the bus.

When we got home Nate went into his room and had to miss watching his favorite cartoon, but he has been a WONDERFUL little boy this morning.

Someday, maybe when he's a teenager, I am sure I will look back and laugh, maybe, but until then I will just Remember to Pray!!!

Some of my favorite websites!!!

I have a few websites (Wayne might disagree with a few though) that I LOVE to check out and I thought it might be fun to share them with you...maybe you can enjoy them too.

This first website/blog is BY FAR my favorite.... The Pioneer Woman also known as Ree is HILARIOUS. She is blunt, quirky, caring, city girl turned country wife (oh,the things she has had to learn).... I could go on and on but you just have to go and see for yourself. **Just a little warning, all dial-up users, Ree is picture happy***She has a "confessions" part which is the day to day life of the farm/family. She has a cooking section that oh my goodness....if you don't want your arteries to clog then don't bother cooking most of her recipes.....but let me warn you, they are SOOOO good.....Penne A La' Betsy is my FAVORITE....SOOO YUMMY!!! She has a photography section that teaches you photography tricks (go figure) as well as Photoshop tricks... very fun!! And she has a Home/Garden section where recently she has been showing the renos of the guest ranch house....SERIOUSLY I love this website.

Another website that I LOVE is Tip Junkie. The website is well...filled with tips. Laurie covers everything from baby showers to yummy foods (the tips are submitted by all the creative people in the world). It is filled with AWESOME tips, I seriously have found TONS of neat things, and wonderful ideas. Ohhhh... if only I had 30 hours a day...I could actually use some of these awesome tips.. someday....

A website I just found but really enjoy is Food and Garden Dailies...She has a BEAUTIFUL garden but the reason I LOVE the blog is because of all the yummy freezer meals she has. What is a freezer meal you ask?!? Well if you've ever made a meal and made a 2nd batch of it to freeze, that's a freezer meal. I LOVE making freezer meals...Another way you can do freezer meals I did a few years ago...I found about 5 recipes that could be frozen (they "looked" yummy). I bought all my ingredients (you bulk buy things and try to use the same ingredients in multiple meals, like chicken in 3 recipes, etc.). I decided I was going to really get a good bang for my buck and quadrupled all the recipes. I spent a WHOLE entire day chopping, sauteing(sp?),cooking, tasting, washing pots/pans/dishes, and making enough food to feed 100 people for a week. I froze all the food in ziploc bags, and fell in bed exhausted. A few weeks later I was ready to see the food again and took out some chicken "pocket" type things with a cream cheese/chicken filling....they were DISGUSTING!!!! Seriously...they were SOOOO gross. The other meals were just okay, and I vowed to NEVER make a recipe in bulk sizes until after I had tried them on a single meal size first. I finally have gotten the nerve to start testing recipes again and today I made twice baked potatoes and flash froze them (I'll fill you in on that one later) so we will see how they turn out after I thaw some and cook them. In the next little while I'll post some of the yummy foods that I have tested, that work and stay yummy after frozen. I love cooking like this because it's nice after a long day to be able to pull something out of the freezer, cook it and have a simple dish and no pots and pans to clean later (usually).

So these are just a few of the many websites I LOVE.... I look at quite a few friend blogs on a regular basis, and especially LOVE photography blogs but I'll save those for another day (maybe).

So leave a comment and link me to some of the websites that you like to look at... I always enjoy fun finds.

Just a test!!

I am trying to figure out some of the "tricks" of the blogging world and have seen people link to other's websites all the time so I figured I would try it.

So this is a website that I LOVE. The Nester has such creative and a neat style and I really enjoy her website.... I wish my house could be as pretty...maybe someday...

Well hopefully that worked... I guess we will see... I actually think it would be fun to show you guys some places that I like to spend my online time...I think that will be another day because a nap is calling me.

This is one post that I hope NEVER happens....well....kinda....

I wasn't going to post this cause I am hoping not to jinx us, but it's been happening too much lately, and I want to look back some day and say either... "I told you so", or "Thank goodness"

A few weeks ago my mom called me and while we were talking she informed me that at church she was just sitting there and all of a sudden she had an "inspiration"/feeling/whatever. She said that just as clear as day she felt....Jackie is going to have triplets, did you catch that TRIPLETS!!!! AGGGHHH!!!! Now my mom has always known what we are all having...did she know Eli was a boy... I don't remember...but she knew Kar was having a girl, a boy for us and I'm pretty sure she knew Ethan was a boy.

What really freaked me out was that the day before I was just thinking about random things, and then I thought...hmm.... I wonder if my mom is going to be able to take off 6 weeks of work when we have the triplets, are they going to pay her, will she be able to stay the whole time 'cause I'm going to need her.... I stopped myself in these thoughts because well.... I felt like puking...hehe...sort of.

My mom had a good laugh at my expense when she informed me of her feeling, I didn't think it was that funny. She'll be the one laughing when she is holding 3 screaming babies.

So I just let this all pass and haven't really thought about it too much...until tonight....

Wayne informed me that today as he was walking down the hall at work he thought "Hmmm....I can't wait to tell everyone at work that we are having triplets!!!" AGGHHHHH!!!!! I think I am going to go the nun route....celibacy sounds GREAT right now...

I am not sure if Heavenly Father is preparing us for having 3, so if we see 3 heartbeats at the ultrasound our hearts don't stop... or if it's just one of his little jokes (I totally think Heavenly Father has a sense of humour)....but whatever it is it sure is making my beautiful hair turn gray. :)

Now to be completely honest with you... I would LOVE to have twins or triplets. No, I am not dillusional right now, I have always wanted 4 kids, and well Wayne and I are tired of trying so why not have just 1 more pregnancy and have 3 and there you go 1+3=4!!! I am sure that it would be CRAZY amounts of work but I really think it could be a ton of fun. Maybe I am dillusional.... whatever it is... when we finally get pregnant I can guarantee you I am going to be FREAKING out when we go for the ultrasound!!! :)

WOW!!! I must be making up for the last month.

I feel like I have been posting like crazy the last few days....oh wait... I have been posting like crazy. There are sooooo many thoughts running through my mind right now... I have soooooooo many pictures that I want to post from our adventures in July.

But in the meantime... I found this fun little questionare. If you want to do it as well on your blog, let me know you did so I can see the fun stuff about you.

Q: What television show or movie did you want to be in when you were little?
A: I TOTALLY wanted to be in Dirty Dancing....isn't that horrible...I LOVED LOVED LOVED the dancing, especially the skanky club scenes ;)

Q: Which character or star did you want to be when you were little?
A: I again wanted to be Baby.... the water scene was just too much.... RRAARR!!!

Q. Most embarrassing moment your friends will never let die?
A. Oh I am sure there are A LOT of embarrassing moments that many of my friends won't let me forget...I can be a TOTAL blonde sometimes... but I have great friends that let me pretend like I am normal. (If you want to share a few of my embarrassing moments....here's your chance)

Q: Your proudest moment or accomplishment?
A: Wow, probably being a mom is my biggest accomplishment. A recent proudest moment for me was right before we came home from Alberta, my Grandma and Grandpa Butler stopped by to say Goodbye. My Grandpa (Grandpa Great) had gone with my Dad and Nate to go fishing (a special tradition that happens when the kids turn 3). I was really worried that Nathan would misbehave, but my Grandpa calmed my fears. He pulled me aside and said how impressed he was with my little boy, Nathan was incredibly polite and was always saying "Yes please" "No Thanks" I can totally admit this was a mommy proud moment...Great Job little guy!!!

Q: What adult did you have a crush on when you were little?
A: Again, Patrick Swayze (I still think he's hot).

Q: What habit or personality trait do you have of your mother?
A: I am calm, stress free, and patient just like my mom....haha...NOT!!! My mom is DEFINATELY those things, I am exact opposite, but I would love to be like that. I think though that I get my caring heart from my mom, she REALLY does care about everyone... she is the kindest person I know.

Q: What did you want to change your name to when you were little?
A: Hmmm.... this is a good one... I actually remember signing my name to see how it would "look" with EVERY boyfriend I ever had.

Q: Who was your first kiss?
A: First real kiss was a guy named Mike H. My first kiss that I truly enjoyed was with a guy named AJ L.

Q: What are 3 adjectives that someone from high school or middle school would use to describe you?
A: Outgoing, Missing, Fun (are those adjectives ?) :)

Q: What hairstyle, clothes, or other accessories did you rock back in the day when it was cool?
A: Oh I had older cousins that were soooo cool so I copied EVERY style they did... I had the tie-dye shirts, the huge socks that were pushed down, the folded and then rolled jeans (if you even know what I am talking about you were around in the 80's), the big wave of bangs, the wings...oh I could go on and on and on...but I think that's enough embarrasment for one question.

Q: What job did those long and annoying surveys in school say you would be good at?
A: Hmmm... I think it actually said a hairdresser, or another profession that worked with people. I am a hairdresser, and I will be working with people as a nurse so I guess it was true.

Q: And what did you try and make the test result outcome be?
A: A doctor.

Q: What made you laugh harder than you have ever laughed before?
A: Wayne's dances... Roaring... cruising in Lethbridge...

Q: Favorite memories of hanging out with your best friends?
A: Karaoke and King Crab legs, Roaring, Friend's night with our big coffee cups filled with hot chocolate/hot apple cider.

Q: What is the most trouble you have ever gotten in with your parents?
A: Oh man, I was not a good teenager, so I am sure there were plenty of times. I really don't remember anything in particular.....maybe I have blocked out those painful memories.

Q: What was your 5-year plan when you had to write it out in high school?
A: I wanted to be a teacher for kids that are deaf....probably wanted to be married, and already have 3 kids.. :)

Q: What is your 5-year plan now?
A: Get my nursing degree, have another baby, enjoy my family, go on a fun trip with just Wayne, but mainly be living the life I am right now.

Is it bad to ask for prayers again?!?

I feel like I am being selfish, but the prayers really seemed to work when I had my surgery so maybe it can definately work for us now. :)

Today I went to see our Specialist again. We are finally moving on in our journey towards having another baby, which I am soooo relieved about. We are going to be doing Intrauterine Insemenation. From what my dr. says
****Disclaimer**** If there are any guys reading this or girls that don't like to talk about "that" stuff you might not want to read this next part :) Just so you are warned!!!

What happens is at the beginning of my cycle I take Clomid (that's what I have been on for this last year) which will help my follicles (where the eggs are) start developing and cooking the eggs. I will then have an ultrasound to see how and if any follicles are developing. If there are some follicles developing then I will get a shot in my muscle which will hopefully make those follicles pop and let the egg/s start going on their trip..:) Now, 24-48 hours after the shot a sperm donation will be made on behalf of my sweet hubby, this will be "washed" ,the sperm will be seperated from the semen (did you know they were different things?) the dead sperm will be removed and only the striving strong sperm will be kept. (Did you know they can also seperate the male sperm from the female sperm at this point? Hmm... I wonder how much I would have to pay off the people to only insert female sperm :) J/K..I'll take whatever I get!! ) The sperm will then be put in a turkey baster(not really, but close enough) and put into my uterus. So this is the procedure...my oh my... it seems like a lot of work.. I will definately be spending A LOT of time at the dr.'s office/hospital during this time, but hopefully it will FINALLY be all worth it.

I am very VERY excited about moving on... and I hope and pray this step works because unfortunately this is the last thing that we can do before IVF (Invitro Fertilization) and if you know anyone that's done this you will know that you pay A LOT of money (which we don't have right now) to hopefully get pregnant (like $10,000 per try).

So this is where the prayers request comes in again. We would really appreciate if you kept us in your prayers and thoughts hopefully things might happen!!

Pirates of Lake Koocanusa

For my parents 30th wedding anniversary, my parents, all my siblings, their spouses (and soon to be spouse) ;), and all the kids spent a week together in a houseboat at Lake Koocanusa. I must say that it was one of the BEST holidays I have EVER been on. It has been YEARS since my family has gone on vacation together... in fact, I think the last time was when we took Russell to the mission home. So it was just a lot of fun spending time together, not only as our original family but also with all our loved ones that have joined our family over the last 5 years.

The houseboat was (I believe) a 15 passenger boat, we had 10 adults and 5 kids, 2 of which were babies. Each family got their own room which was soooo nice, and then there was a fair size kitchen/living room area, 2 bathrooms, and an upstairs deck that even had a hottub which was used quite a bit.

The first day we got there we unloaded the vehicles, loaded the boat, picked our rooms, Dad was taught how to drive and then we were off. We found a GREAT beach, docked the boat in the sand (it was fun watching our big tough husbands anchor the boat to the beach) and then we started our week of fun.

We spent a lot of time playing on the beach, floating in the cool water, cooling off in the houseboat, watching movies, napping, eating (oh the food was SOOOOO good), and just having a grand ol' time.

We had a few accidents, Steven tried to kill Beth but Beth won (FYI, Steven is probably double the size of Beth, but Beth is FEISTY) Because of this altercation a hospital was visited which was good 'cause Lisa and Mom learned how to do stitches. Then Eli decided to prove that the fireplace hearth was not a good place to fall, but all in all, everyone came home in one piece probably a lot fatter but in one piece. :)

I took some pictures with my camera but I used Lisa's and Dad's (aka, spoiled brats...j/k) new cameras to take most of the pictures of the week. So until I get a cd of the pics...hint hint Dad... I can only post the ones I have from my camera. Probably the best part of the week (other than being with family) was when the kids found a TREASURE MAP... but stayed tuned.... that story and pictures will have to wait... again until I get the cd... :)

I should add the theme of the week was PIRATES... Beth and I made an AWESOME pirate flag, Mom and Dad(mostly Dad) went overboard on the pirate gear (swords, hooks, eyepatches, etc. etc.) and the kids went CRAZY!!!! Seriously, they all LOVED playing pirates, well I guess the big kids did, the little guys were happy eating sand, right Ethan. :)

Pirate Grandma on the prowl:


AHHH Protect your fort (I love Nate's look in this pic)!!!:


ATTACK!!!:


What a cutie, seriously, this kid is such a poser, everytime I would pull out the camera he'd give me this face.... such a sweetie:


The whole family (minus Dennis, Karalee's fiance) on our last day, right before heading back to reality:


We also stopped in Sparwood to take pictures by the world's biggest truck, Nathan thought it was a big Tonka truck.


Again, what's with this cute kid popping up in all my pics?!?:


The 3 cousins (we were missing Destiny and Ethan, they were party poopers... or at least their parents were):


Seriously, stay tuned... we had a lot of fun that week, and there are TONS more pictures and stories that I would LOVE to post.

Memory Tag!!!

MEMORY TAG!!!1. Add a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you. If you don't want to play on your blog, or if you don't have a blog, I'll leave my memory of you in my comments. I can't wait to see what people remember.

***If you haven't ever met me, I would love to know what your favorite post has been*** :)